Had a few hours to kill before my flight from Bhubaneswar. So thought of stopping by Dhaulagiri. Dhaulagiri is a small hillock surrounded by plains, around 7 km from the State capital. Dhauli, as it is locally known, is believed to be the place where the famous (or rather infamous) Kalinga war was fought in 260 BC. Over 150,000 lives were lost in the bitter battle. It is said the waters of the nearby river Daya had turned blood red due to the merciless bloodbath.
Despite emerging victorious, the huge loss of life and suffering witnessed in the battlefield transformed King Ashoka from Chandashoka to Dharmashoka, from a tyrant ruler to a benevolent king. He renounced war forever by offering his sword at the feet of Lord Buddha. He embraced Buddhism and became one of its biggest proponents. The king had 84000 stupas built and sent them to places as far as distant Greece with peace messengers. Ashoka The Great is today remembered, among the other things, for his work in establishing peace among nations.
A number of edicts of King Ashoka can be seen engraved on mass of rocks by the road side near the summit of the hill. The edicts are written in Prakrit language, the then language of the common masses, using the Brahmi script. In these edicts, Kind Ashoka has declared his doctrine of paternalism, accepting all men as his children, and urged the administrators to work for the welfare of the common man.
The Shanti Stupa at Dhaulagiri, also known as the Peace Pagoda, is built at the summit of Dhauli hills. It is a dazzling white pagoda symbolizing world peace. The Shanti Stupa was built jointly by the Nipponzan Myohoji, a Japanese Buddhist Sangha founded by Nichidatsu Fujii or Fujii Guruji as he was called, and the Kalinga Nippon Buddha Sangha in 1972.
The pagoda dome has five umbrellas at the top signifying five essential parts of Buddhism. The walls of the pagoda is adorned by beautiful stone panels which included the Bodhi Tree, an elephant procession and King Ashoka offering his sword in front of Lord Buddha.
Nice write up. I liked the pictures as well.
ReplyDeleteThank you for the lovely comment :)
DeleteVery Nice. . ..
ReplyDeleteThank you for stopping by and leaving a comment :)
DeleteEnlightening piece of work!!...:-)
ReplyDeleteThat's a rather interesting word to use in this context...enlightening. Reminded me of my school lesson on Gautam Buddha :)
DeleteIt was a remarkable post, as always, Ramakant. I'm so glad that you did the research into the images.
ReplyDeleteNice to see you here after a long time. I was quite lucky to get a knowledgeable guide during my visit. And later I looked up some more to verify the facts.
DeleteA beautiful tribute to a great peacemaker. The history is rich and the sights are wonderful, great shots. Thank you for sharing this rich bit of history with us.
ReplyDeleteHave a fantastic week!
Happy that you enjoyed the post. You too have a great week ahead!
DeleteThe details are amazing, the architecture wonderful.
ReplyDeleteThank you for the kind words!
DeleteSo you had been at Bhubaneswar, my home-city!
ReplyDeleteIn December every year a 'Dhauli Festival' of dances is organised at the foot-hill of Dhauli.
Well-known artistes from all over India are invited to present different dance-forms of India. Attending this Festival is a heavenly experience.
My native is Sambalpur. Whenever I visit home, I have a stop at Bhubaneswar. The Dhauli festival sounds like a fantastic event. Will see if I can plan something for December. Will be wonderful to watch the event live.
DeleteGreat photographs. I bet you had a fun day.
ReplyDeletehttp://joycelansky.blogspot.com/2013/06/musical-monday-lets-do-time-warp-again.html
It was quite fun. I actually had around 5 hrs before my flight and I will say the time was well spent :)
Deletebeautiful photos and great info
ReplyDeletethanks
Thank you for stopping by and leaving a nice comment.
DeleteMe encantan las fotos..me nudo viaje te pegas,,,un abarzo desde Murcia..
ReplyDeleteMuchas Gracias :)
DeleteLovely capture...serenity at its best!!!
ReplyDeleteHmm...it is the very embodiment of world peace :)
Deletebeautiful
ReplyDeleteThank you!
DeleteGreat photos and history - stunning
ReplyDeleteThank you Glen for the kind words.
Deletelovely description with beautiful images...
ReplyDeleteNice of you to drop by Vineeta. Thanks for the kind words!
DeleteYou don't fine architecture like that much these days.
ReplyDeleteTrue. We are past the era of beautiful architectural wonders. These days we celebrate feats of engineering :)
DeleteGreat history -- I am glad he turned his efforts to establishing peace. I wish more world leaders would do that! It is a beautiful temple , breathtaking really!
ReplyDeleteAnd I guess that made so much difference. He was instrumental in so many people friendly policies and development work. Thanks for stopping by.
DeleteThis post reflects peace in so many ways... love the captures as always and the history associated with the place, many thanks for taking us on a beautiful arm chair travel full of calm and serenity.
ReplyDeleteHappy you enjoyed the post Arti. Thanks for leaving behind such a thoughtful comment.
DeleteI visited it in my Master field trip on the way to Bhuvaneshwar from Puri and really liked it...we visited it at sundown and the white of the stupa against fading sunlight was totally amazing!!!
ReplyDeletehttp://www.myunfinishedlife.com/
I wish I could have waiting till dusk. But I had a flight to catch. Maybe another time.
DeleteWonderful images ! wish I could see this place someday :)
ReplyDeleteThank you Uma for stopping by. No reason why you can't see it sometime. Odisha has quite a few beautiful offerings on the tourist map.
DeleteBeautiful places..unfortunately never been able to visit there..:(
ReplyDeleteNice clicks..like always..:)
I have been through Bhubaneswar multiple times, but this was my first visit to Dhaulagiri :)
DeleteYou can plan to stop by next time you are in the city.
great work :)
ReplyDeleteThank you :)
Deletesimply beautifully captured shots...lovely reading about the place!
ReplyDeleteThank you Kalyan. Good to know you enjoyed the post.
DeleteIt's fun to be a wandering traveler and to go about clicking pictures, right? :) You do a great job! :)
ReplyDeleteWHat camera do you use btw? :P
Travelling is fun, no questions on that. Thanks for the compliment :)
DeleteI mostly use a Canon 40D during my travels.
This is a very beautiful structure which looks very peaceful indeed. Thanks for the interesting information as well as your wonderful photos.
ReplyDeleteGood to know you enjoyed the post. Thanks for stopping by.
DeleteThis must be such a magnificent place to visit.
ReplyDeleteThank you for taking us along with you!
Happy you found the post enjoyable. Thanks for stopping by.
DeleteIt's so beautiful and peaceful now, hard to imagine that bloody history!
ReplyDeleteQuite true. It has quite a checkered past. Thanks for stopping by.
DeleteI'm a bit of a history buff, so I thoroughly enjoyed your post, and of course, your pictures. (ALWAYS love your photos.)
ReplyDeleteA couple years ago, a temple not too many miles from us was completed. It's supposed to be the largest in North America, I believe, and on top of its gorgeous architecture, what amazes me about it is its bright whiteness. It glows so white in the sunshine, it's startling. And after dark, lights of various colors glow to keep it luminated during the night. If I ever go that way in the near future, I'll have to carry my camera.
Thank you for the kind words. Such comments do encourage me to do a better job when clicking pictures.
DeleteYou should take a few pictures of the temple sometime. Especially when there is a festive occasion, the environment is quite charged up and presents lovely photo opportunities.
Hello!
ReplyDeleteI am charmed by your article. It's great.
Your photos are excellent.
This is what you show to me is new, Oriental.
I'm glad that you visited my blog.
I send greetings.
Lucia
Greeting to you too. Happy that you liked your visit to my blog. Hope to see you here more often.
DeleteBeautiful Photos.
ReplyDeleteThanks for your visit and kind comments.
Thank you for stopping by and leaving a nice comment :)
DeleteGreat pictures of King Ashoka, and the story.
ReplyDeleteThank you Bob for the kind words. Nice to see you here.
DeleteInteresting history and beautiful fotografie.Co event has already happened to our own Earth, evil and good. It seems that many people still have not learned from the mistakes of history.
ReplyDeleteI agree. We, as a human race, seldom learn from history until its too late. Thanks for stopping by and leaving a nice comment.
DeleteBeautifully composed images of some amazing places :)
ReplyDeleteIt's a beautiful place. Thank you Ruth for leaving a nice comment :)
DeleteNice place, exquisite photos and bright, beautiful works of art ...!
ReplyDeleteThank you for the kind words :)
Deletegreat artwork you share.
ReplyDeleteI am happy you like the art and enjoyed the post.
Deletebeautiful statuary. sad about the loss of lives in that battle, though.
ReplyDeleteIt's sad. But something good came out of the horror as the king was transformed to a benevolent ruler post this horrible war.
DeleteWhat a history this place has - nice photos.
ReplyDeleteIt does have quite a checkered past, doesn't it :)
DeleteThanks for stopping by.
What a beautiful place. I love the statues.
ReplyDeleteIt is a very beautiful place. Thanks for stopping by.
DeleteThat is very unique, umbrellas at the top of pagoda. Beautiful structure and the statues are grand!
ReplyDeleteIt maybe a unique feature of this pagoda. I don't recall seeing anything similar at Sanchi, which is the only other Pagoda I have visited. Thanks for stopping by.
DeleteNice Pictures..Place is worth visiting..
ReplyDeleteIt definitely is worth a visit :)
DeleteLovely captures and interesting information
ReplyDeleteThank you for stopping by :)
DeleteThis just proves that even from the worst of incidents something good can come up. After the bitter war, King Ashoka became the benevolent ruler the world came to know.
ReplyDeleteThe stone work on these buildings is an endless source of images - great pictures.
ReplyDeleteCheers - Stewart M - Melbourne
I concur. They will whet any photographer's appetite :)
DeleteThanks for stopping by.
Great captured, lovely photos. A lot to see!
ReplyDeleteNice to see you here. Thanks for the lovely comment.
DeleteLove the architecture and details! Awesome captures!
ReplyDeleteThank you Veronica. Appreciate your lovely comment :)
DeleteInteresting monuments and beautiful sculptures. In spite of such examples, it is shocking to think that wars have continued (with increasing firepower) over the centuries. It makes me wonder if the human race can ever live at peace? Ours is one of the rare species that kills other members of the same species and members of other species, for reasons other than food. Pathetic.
ReplyDeleteDestination Infinity
Our species suffers from lack of trust and at the same time is endowed with superior intelligence. What else is to be expected?
DeleteBeautiful place, you visit looks like it was very rewarding for you.
ReplyDeleteIt was a very rewarding visit. Nice of you to drop by :)
DeleteA beautiful stupa and rich history left behind.
ReplyDeleteTrue indeed! Thanks for dropping by.
DeleteYour pictures are very good, I love the beautiful white building in the first one.
ReplyDeleteThank you Ginny for the lovely words. Glad you enjoyed your visit :)
DeleteYou really got some great pictures, and I'm glad you shared the history with your readers, that makes them even more special to see.
ReplyDeleteThank you for the encouraging words. I am glad you enjoyed reading the history of the place in addition to the pictures.
Deletethank you for the tour. The carving is amazing.
ReplyDeleteAnd thank you for stopping by my blog. Have a wonderful week.
I am glad you enjoyed the virtual tour of Dhauli. You too have a fantastic week.
Deletewhat an amazing pictorial tour! loved seeing your wonderful photos. thanks also for the history behind them...
ReplyDeletei just love india and its culture.
and your blog!
And I am glad having a wonderful reader like you. Happy you liked the post :)
DeleteWonderful shots of the place. Thanks for reminding me of visit to this place.
ReplyDeleteIt sure is a wonderful place. Glad the post could remind you of some good memories :)
DeleteBeautiful building and sculptures, thanks for sharing the images and descriptions, very interesting!
ReplyDeleteGlad you enjoyed your visit. Thanks for leaving behind a nice comment :)
DeleteWow beautiful Ramakant! I'd been here recently and the Buddha here is magnificent.
ReplyDeleteIt's quite an impressive place. Nice you know you visited it recently. Were you on an Odisha tour?
DeleteYour place is amazing..
ReplyDeletelovely blog you have Sir..
thanks for visiting me and giving me the opportunity to land here :)
hope to see you more !!
Nice to see you here. Happy you enjoyed your first visit :)
DeleteThe stupas and the sculptures are classic! Just beautiful, and couldn't simply take my eyes off!
ReplyDeleteThe stupa is indeed quite beautiful. Happy you enjoyed the pictures :)
DeleteA small town with so much history. Beautiful pictures. Thanks for sharing this, even your readers can plan a visit there when they are in Bhubaneswar.
ReplyDeleteI'll be happy if my readers find information on this blog useful. Thanks for stopping by and leaving a nice comment.
DeleteThere were different flavours of sculpture in the stone panels. I have just put up a few of the pictures I clicked.
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing your beautiful photos and also your knowledge of this wonderful place. I remember reading about Ashoka in history class in Malaysia... :)
ReplyDeleteI hope this post was a good refresher for you in that case. Nice to see you here :)
DeleteI like reading your blog and have nominated you for the ABC Award. The details are available at:
ReplyDeletehttp://hindustanisakhisaheli.blogspot.com/p/recognitions.html
:-)
Thank you so much for considering me good enough for this award. Appreciate it :)
DeleteThis one is different from the one at Delhi and Leh. So well brought out
ReplyDeleteI guess so. The only other stupa I have seen was the one at Sarnath and that was definitely different from this one. Thanks for stopping by.
DeleteThese are some really beautiful pictures you have taken. Venerable Nichidatsu Fujii, the founding preceptor of 'Nippozan Myohoji' met Gandhiji in 1933 at Wardha and became his life-long admirer. Gandhiji, too, impressed by his infinite clarity of purpose and dedication to peace, named him Fujii Guruji. In 1983, 1983, Fujii Guruji expressed his wish to build a Vishwa Shanti Stupa at Wardha. In 1993, the President of India, Dr. Shankar Dayal Sharma inuagurated the Stupa. Read more facts about the Vishwa Shanti Stupa on the Jamnalal Bajaj Foundation website.
ReplyDeleteThank you for sharing the information.
DeleteSuper !
ReplyDeleteThank you!
Delete